Another doctor puts politics ahead of patients

ANOTHER DOCTOR PUTS POLITICS AHEAD OF PATIENTS…. In general, Americans hold physicians in very high regard. When Gallup recently polled all of the various entities involved in the health care debate, insurance companies fared the worst, but doctors fared the best — by a considerable margin.

This makes sense, of course. Most Americans have had personal experiences with physicians who’ve not only treated our ailments, but who’ve earned a great deal of respect.

It’s what makes it all the more striking when an ostensible medical professional puts Republican politics ahead of patient care.

Dr. Jack Cassell, an Orlando-area urologist and part-time Republican crank, became a national laughing stock a couple of weeks ago when he announced that patients who support President Obama should seek medical attention elsewhere. Cassell later conceded he doesn’t really know anything about the health care reform law he hates so much.

Arizona Dermatologist Joseph Scherzer put a sign outside his office warning his patients that he will be closing his doors because of the new law. “If you voted for Obamacare, be aware these doors will close before it goes into effect,” the sign reads. Scherzer — a self-described conservative — claims that the “stress” the law will supposedly impose will cause him to close up shop.

Seriously. The dermatologist said government-prescribed treatment methods are causing him so much anxiety, he won’t be able to practice medicine. “The stress is what would push me out the door,” Scherzer said. He added that some medical professionals “have actually committed suicide over these things.”

As a factual matter, no one seems to be able to figure exactly which government-prescribed treatment methods he’s so worked up about, since the law doesn’t mandate any specific methods at all. Indeed, if the Affordable Care Act were going to cause any undue hardships for medical professionals, it wouldn’t have been endorsed by the American Medical Association.

Doctors, by and large, have certainly earned their exalted status in society, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few bizarre apples in the bunch.